Optical coherence tomography of patients with Parkinson's disease and progressive supranuclear palsy

Objectives: To determine if Parkinson's disease (PD) and progressive supranuclear palsy (PSP) differed on retinal measurements using optical coherence tomography (OCT). Patients and methods: In a prospective, controlled, cross-sectional cohort study, we recruited patients with PD or PSP for more than three years, as well as control subjects. We measured peripapillary retinal nerve fiber layer (RNFL) thickness and macular volume using spectral-domain OCT. The association between these OCT measures and the disease characteristics of duration and disability were examined using a linear mixed effect model. Results: We analyzed eyes from n = 12 PD patients, n = 11 PSP patients, and n = 12 control subjects. RNFL thickness was reduced in eyes from patients with PSP, but there were no differences in macular volume between groups. RNFL. thickness and macular volume were not significantly different between eyes from patients with PD and controls. Worse disability was associated with reduced macular volumes. Conclusion: PSP but not PD is associated with thinning of the peripapillary RNFL when symptoms have been present for more than three years.